Strangulation: Prevention and Awareness

Jim Shannon Excerpts

Tuesday 3rd November 2026 Westminster Hall

[Aphra Brandreth (Chester South and Eddisbury) (Con)]

I beg to move,

That this House has considered the prevention and public awareness of strangulation.

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Ms McVey. Twenty-seven per cent of women killed by men in the UK were strangled to death. That is a shocking statistic that should concern us all, but behind the statistics are the stories of victims and survivors, many of whom have bravely shared their experiences. I want to recognise their courage today, and thank everyone who has helped to bring this issue to Parliament, particularly the Institute for Addressing Strangulation.

One of the reasons why I am grateful to have secured this debate is that far too few people understand how prevalent non-fatal strangulation is or the devastating harm that it can cause. But let me start where I believe we must begin: by listening to survivors. Last month, I attended the IFAS conference, where I met an inspirational woman whom I will call Rose to protect her identity. I want to share her story because it brings home, far more powerfully than any statistic could, the devastating impact that strangulation can have on someone’s life—not just in the moment, but for many years afterwards.

In 2021, Rose was raped in an ordeal that lasted several hours. During this already horrific attack, she was also subjected to strangulation. It was the moment she thought that she was going to die. As Rose explained:

“The strangulation was not a minor detail within the attack; it was central to the violence I experienced.”

In the aftermath, Rose sought medical help at several hospitals, but struggled to obtain an appropriate assessment, have her injuries documented or receive the compassionate, trauma-informed care that she so desperately needed. At one hospital, she waited alone for hours before eventually leaving. At another, her request for photographs of her injuries was not acted on and she was questioned about why she had not reported the rape.

Rose had already endured an horrific attack, yet when she turned to the very services that should have helped her, she was left feeling dismissed and unsupported. The consequences of that failure were significant. Rose waited almost a month before reporting the attack to the police. Even today, she continues to live with the physical and psychological consequences of what happened to her.

Rose’s attacker was eventually sentenced to 20 years’ imprisonment, with a further five-year extension period. Despite that outcome, Rose describes having to fight for the strangulation to be properly recognised as central to the violence that she experienced.

[Jim Shannon (Strangford) (DUP)]

I commend the hon. Lady for bringing this incredibly sensitive and difficult subject to the House. Back in 2022, we in Northern Ireland introduced legislation for a stand-alone criminal offence, carrying a sentence of up to 14 years. Strangulation is a terrifyingly accurate indicator of escalating abuse and potential lethality. Does the hon. Lady, who is a friend, agree that if we are truly to protect victims, the Government must work hand in hand with the Department of Justice in Northern Ireland and local support charities to launch a robust and targeted public awareness campaign, to ensure that healthcare workers, police officers and victims themselves can recognise the signs of non-fatal strangulation before it turns fatal?

[Aphra Brandreth]

The hon. Member makes an important point. Later in my speech I will address the work that has already happened in Northern Ireland to raise awareness, but certainly much more needs to be done.

To return to Rose’s story, the message that she gives us today is really clear:

“Do not wait for a perfect disclosure, a police report or visible injury to take strangulation seriously.”

I want to recognise the positive steps that have been taken to recognise the seriousness of this offence. The introduction of a stand-alone offence of non-fatal strangulation or suffocation in the Domestic Abuse Act 2021 was an important step taken by the previous Conservative Government, recognising that strangulation should be treated as a serious crime in its own right. But legislation is only part of the answer. My question to the Minister is about whether it is working effectively in practice. Are we doing enough to close the gaps between healthcare, safeguarding and criminal justice that have failed victims such as Rose?

Rose’s experience is sadly far from an isolated case. Strangulation is reported in around one in five rapes and sexual assaults, but it is also a particularly serious and dangerous form of domestic abuse, with a quarter of women who access domestic abuse community and refuge services reporting having experienced strangulation or suffocation. It is particularly frightening that strangulation is also a major warning sign of potentially fatal violence. Research has found that women who have experienced strangulation by an intimate partner face around seven times the odds of being killed by that partner. That is why strangulation must be treated as a red line. It is not simply another act of violence; it is a warning sign that must be recognised and acted on before it is too late.

I pay tribute to the Institute for Addressing Strangulation, led by Bernie Ryan, which has worked tirelessly to give victims a voice and improve our understanding of the crime. IFAS has made an invaluable contribution to improving recognition of strangulation and the response to those who experience it. The evidence it has uncovered is staggering: between June 2024 and June 2025, police recorded 44,426 strangulation and suffocation offences in England and Wales, up 13% on the previous year and 87% since the stand-alone offence was introduced in 2022. Some of that increase may reflect better recognition and reporting, which is welcome, but we must not lose sight of what the figures represent. Behind every recorded offence is a victim of an extremely dangerous act of violence. For too many women, strangulation forms part of a wider pattern of domestic abuse and coercive control, with potentially devastating consequences.

The Government have set themselves the ambition of halving violence against women and girls, and I am sure Members across the House will want to see that achieved, but if we are serious about preventing violence against women and girls, we must be serious about recognising strangulation as one of the clearest warning signs of potentially fatal abuse. That means recognising it early, supporting victims and ensuring that police, healthcare and safeguarding professionals understand the risks and act. This is not just about securing justice after a crime has been committed; it is about preventing further violence and potentially saving lives.

IFAS has done remarkable work since the stand-alone offence came into force in June 2022. I hope the Minister has read its recent impact report, which sets out clearly what still needs to change. Let me start with the medical response. To understand why this is so important, we need to understand what strangulation does to the body. Strangulation can restrict the flow of blood to and from the brain. It can cause hypoxia, brain injury and stroke, with symptoms that may not become apparent until after the attack. For pregnant women, it can have serious consequences for their pregnancy and their unborn baby. It can leave lasting psychological scars that survivors carry for years. Yet in many cases, there are no visible signs of injury at all. That means that a woman who walks into A&E looking on the surface as though she is fine may be anything but. If our response depends on what can be seen, we will continue to fail women who need help.

I recently met my constituent, Dr Helen Bichard, a clinical neuropsychologist whose research includes the effects of non-fatal strangulation. She made it clear that healthcare professionals need the right guidance and training to recognise the danger and respond with the compassion that someone such as Rose was denied. I would welcome the Minister’s thoughts on how we can ensure that happens consistently across healthcare services.

There is an inequality at the heart of the current system that must be addressed. If a woman is strangled during a rape or sexual assault, she may be able to access a sexual assault referral centre with specialist medical, psychological and forensic support. But if a woman is strangled by her partner, in her own kitchen, without sexual assault, she does not necessarily have access to the same care or forensic medical examination. The medical risk does not disappear because of the circumstances in which the attack took place, and nor should a woman’s access to proper assessment, documentation of her injuries and ongoing support. That is why I support IFAS’s call for a national pathway, so that wherever a victim first seeks help, they can access the care and support they need. I would welcome the Minister’s response to that proposal.

The same applies to the criminal justice system. Now that non-fatal strangulation is a stand-alone offence, we must ensure that the police have the training and resources to investigate it effectively. Will the Minister update us on how the Government are assessing the implementation of the offence? What more is being done to improve consistency in police investigations and evidence collection?

Improving our response to offences that have already happened is vital, but we must also stop them happening in the first place. That means confronting an uncomfortable truth: strangulation is increasingly being normalised. Young people encounter depictions of strangulation through pornography and social media, often without the information they need to understand the very real dangers involved. We need to get the message across: there is no safe way to strangle.

Sadly, it is not only in pornography that strangulation is being portrayed in ways that risk normalising it. This year, the BBC broadcast Romania’s Eurovision entry, a song called “Choke Me” in which that phrase is repeated around 30 times. I find it deeply troubling that a song that appears to glamorise such a dangerous act was broadcast into family living rooms across the country. I am particularly disappointed that the BBC, funded by licence fee payers, did not heed the concerns raised about the dangerous message the song could send. This is not about censorship; it is about the messages that we are sending to young people, and whether we are doing enough to educate them about the very real dangers of strangulation.

IFAS research found that, among sexually experienced 16 to 34-year-olds, almost two thirds reported having been strangled during sex. That is a deeply concerning finding. We need to talk to young people about healthy relationships and make sure that they understand the very real risks of strangulation. Our public institutions have a responsibility to take these issues seriously. Will the Government raise with broadcasters concerns about the portrayal and normalisation of strangulation?

This debate is particularly timely, because this Friday new criminal offences will come into force in England and Wales that make it illegal to possess or publish pornographic material that depicts strangulation or suffocation. I very much welcome this change, which follows the important work of Baroness Bertin and her review of pornography regulation, but legislation must be effective in practice, so will the Minister say how the Government intend to ensure that the new offences are enforced?

Alongside legislation and education, we need to raise public awareness more widely. When Northern Ireland changed its law, it ran a broadcast and poster campaign so that the public understood what had changed and why, yet there has been no equivalent national campaign in England and Wales. A well-targeted public awareness campaign could help to challenge dangerous misconceptions, encourage victims to seek help and make sure that people understand the risks. Will the Minister commit to that today?

Regarding the future of IFAS, I acknowledge the Minister’s letter, which arrived—almost as if by magic—yesterday. I welcome the commitment to meet IFAS to discuss its future sustainability and funding opportunities. Unfortunately, there is no commitment to continued funding, let alone the long-term certainty that IFAS needs. Since October 2022, IFAS has brought together clinical, forensic research and policy expertise that simply did not exist in that form before. The Government have invested more than £2.1 million in that work, and I believe that was money very well spent, but IFAS has been kept going on short-term funding arrangements, sometimes for as little as six months at a time and with very little notice. No small specialist organisation can retain staff, plan its work or protect its hard-won expertise in that kind of uncertainty.

We have invested in building up expertise; surely, we cannot now allow it to be lost. That would be a loss not just for IFAS itself, but for victims, who depend on better awareness, better training and better support, and for the police officers, healthcare professionals and others who rely on the expertise of IFAS to help them to do their jobs effectively. Although the Minister’s letter did not give me the reassurance that I had hoped for, I am giving her an opportunity today to reassure me. Having heard the evidence, will she commit to working with IFAS to secure the long-term funding it needs to continue its vital work?

I will finish by returning to where I began. Rose survived. She found the strength to tell her story and the courage to share it, so that others might be spared what she went through. She should never have had to fight to be believed. The next woman should not have to, either. I also say to anyone listening to this debate who has experienced strangulation: please, seek help. There are organisations that can support you. You do not have to wait until you have visible injuries or have reported a crime to seek medical advice and support.

The previous Conservative Government took an important step by making non-fatal strangulation a stand-alone offence. We must not lose the momentum that that legislation created. We have recognised the seriousness of strangulation in law; now we must make sure that that recognition makes a difference in people’s lives.